;e Connection has invited a handful of authors to write a little something just for our readers.
We’ve given them free rein regarding subject matter, with brevity serving as the only constraint.
Proli;c author Jonathan Kellerman—perhaps best known for his Alex Delaware series,
including the newest title, Guilt—penned the ;rst piece. As spring rolls around and
many of us think about shedding our winter coats and spending time outdoors,
Kellerman shares a personal encounter with nature in this Connection exclusive.
Novelist takes a walk
on the wild side

By Jonathan Kellerman

I’M OFTEN ASKED how similar I am to my
fictional hero, Alex Delaware. My stock
answer: We’re both psychologists and driven
fellows, but Alex is younger, cuter and braver.
An adventurous guy, he lives up in the hills,
while I, a long-married father and grandfather, remain on flat land.

But several years ago, my wife, the beautiful, gifted best-seller Faye Kellerman, and I
headed for higher ground, a patch of northern New Mexico where four mountain ranges
converge. The air is sweet, the biggest of skies
is blue 300 days a year and the quiet allows us
to get a lot of writing done. We haven’t abandoned city living, but we have come to love
and respect our high-altitude life.

A couple of years ago, forest fires raging
50 miles to the west caused mule deer, rabbits,
groundhogs, chipmunks, snakes and lizards
to migrate closer to us than usual. And, of
course, the creatures that prey upon all of the
above followed suit. On top of that, the closure of several hiking trails freed the local
fauna from the creatures they fear most—
people—emboldening them to explore.

That summer, anyone reckless enough toleave seeds for the birds was likely to meet upwith a bear. Or two. Or three. Sightings ofmountain lions were up, and ditto for raptors,mostly red-tailed hawks. On an early-morningwalk with our dog, Faye and I spied a baldeagle hovering directly above ourroad. Those guys love fish andgenerally stick close to water, andthe Rio Grande is miles away. Butwhy not take a little side trip to thebuffet table?

AU THOR PHO TO COUR TES Y JONATHAN KELLERMAN

Jonathan Kellerman with
his wife and fellow novelist,
Faye Kellerman.

assurance and grace, and we watched, transfixed, as they tagged dutifully behind Mom.

Without looking back, she ascended to
the top of a berm and vanished from view,
and the first kitten followed.

But the other one stopped.

And stared.

Talk about a giant dose of attitude. At that
moment, the lethal predator this tot was destined to grow into was as obvious as the cunning in its sharp little eyes.

The face-off lasted a few seconds. Then
Feisty Feline gave an arrogant toss of its applesize head and was gone.

That forest fire won’t be the last visited
upon northern New Mexico; conflagrations
are a part of nature. Should we be there the
next time, we’ll be looking for that cat. C

MARCH 2013 ;e Costco Connection 63

The Costco Connection
Guilt (Item #729351) will be available in most
Costco warehouses.